December 4, 2022

Matthew 1:18-25

Second Sunday of Advent

Order of Worship

Sunday, December 4, 2022

Welcome and Announcements

Gathering the Family Together

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence!

All: Verse 1

Let all mortal flesh keep silence, And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded, For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth, Our full homage to demand.

Women: Verse 2

King of kings, yet born of Mary, As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture, In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful His own self for heavenly food.

All: Verse 3

Rank on rank the host of heaven, Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth From the realms of endless day,
That the powers of hell may vanish As the darkness clears away.

All: Verse 4

At His feet the six-winged seraph, Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the presence, As with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Lord Most High!

Call To Worship

Scripture Reading:                                                                  Luke 1:46-55

Mary’s Song of Praise: The Magnificat

⁴⁶ And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,

⁴⁷     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

⁴⁸ for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

⁴⁹ for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.

⁵⁰ And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.

⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;

⁵² he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;

⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.

⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,

⁵⁵ as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

Prayer of Invocation

Advent Proclamation

Leader: We listen, Lord, for your words of comfort.

People: We listen for joyful news of your arrival.

Leader: In the wilderness of this world,
we have heard voices announcing your coming.

People: They have reminded us that
our lives are like the grasses of the field.

Leader: The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand forever.

People: We hunger for your word, O Lord,
because your word gives life.

Leader: Your word is salvation – the joy of all humankind.

People: Come and speak your word to us.

Leader:   Come, Lord, and speak to your people. Your word is life to us,
and your promises are true. Prepare our hearts and our world
to hear your voice and to see your glory.

Leader: Today we light two candles.

We light the first candle to remind us of our need for a savior.

We light the second candle to remind us of the promises

in God’s Word.

People:    O King of all nations, Jesus Christ,

               Only joy of every heart, Come and save Your people.

Red Hymnal #178                                           “O Little Town of Bethlehem”

(Verses 1, 2 & 4)

Declaring What We Believe:

The Nicene Creed

All:

We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

Men & Boys:

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,

begotten from the Father before all ages,

God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God,

begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father.

Women & Girls

Through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven;

he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,

and was made man.

Jubilee Singers

He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered and was buried.

Women & Girls:

The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.

He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

Men & Boys:

He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead.

His kingdom will never end.

All:

And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life.

He proceeds from the Father and the Son,

and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified.

He spoke through the prophets.

We believe in one holy universal and apostolic church.

We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look forward to the resurrection of the dead,

and to life in the world to come.   Amen.

We Respond to God’s Presence

Once in Royal David’s City

(Verses 1, 2, &4)

Verse 1 – Jubilee Singers:

Once in royal David’s city stood a lowly cattle shed,

Where a mother laid her Baby in a manger for His bed:

Mary was that mother mild, Jesus Christ her little Child.

Verse 2 – Congregation:

He came down to earth from Heaven, Who is God and Lord of all, And His shelter was a stable, and His cradle was a stall;

With the poor, and mean, and lowly, lived on earth our Savior holy.

Verse 4 – Congregation:

And our eyes at last shall see Him, through His own redeeming love,

For that Child so dear and gentle is our Lord in Heav’n above,

And He leads His children on to the place where He is gone.

(Verses 1, 2, 4 public domain. Verse 3 Michael Morgan © 2011, admin. Faith Alive Christian Resources)

Holy Child
1. Holy Child who chose the hearts of men to be His favoured home.
Leaving Heaven’s gates for Bethlehem, God came to call His own.

Now to us the highest King is born, behold, the Royal Son.

Glory kneels to bind up all that’s torn; the promised One has come.
1. Joy and pain, as man, He knew on earth; No place to lay His head.
As a servant He embraced this world and on a cross He bled.

Having borne the deepest grief of man, He rose to Heaven’s throne.

Now I’m sheltered in the Father’s hand until He calls me home.
1. May the gift of God amaze us still, the triumph of all time.
As His child, I kneel to Heaven’s will and make His purpose mine.

Though this road be scarred with trial and pain, it’s paved with lavish grace.

Knowing Him will be my greatest gain; His Throne, my resting place.

Copyright © 2004 Thankyou Music/Adm. by worshiptogether.com songs excl. UK & Europe, adm. by Kingsway Music. tym@kingsway.co.uk. Used by permission.

Red Hymnal #183 “I Wonder as I Wander”

Children’s Sermon

Pastoral Prayer

The basket to receive His tithes and our offerings

is located on the left as you leave the Sanctuary.

We Worship Through Hearing

Sermon Hymn:

Sing We the Song of Emmanuel
1. Sing we the song of Emmanuel; this the Christ who was long fore-told.
Lo! In the shadows of Bethlehem, promise of dawn now our eyes behold.

God most high in a manger laid, lift your voices and now proclaim:

Great and glorious, Love has come to us;

join now with the hosts of heaven.
1. Come we to welcome Emmanuel; King who came with no crown or throne.
Helpless He lay, the invincible, Maker of Mary, now Mary’s son.

O what wisdom to save us all, shepherds, sages, before Him fall.

Grace and majesty, what humility; come on bended knee, adore Him.
1. Go spread the news of Emmanuel; joy and peace for the weary heart.
Lift up your heads, for your King has come;

sing, for the light overwhelms the dark.

Glory shining for all to see, hope alive, let the gospel ring.

God has made a way; He will have the praise;

tell the world His name is Jesus.

© 2015 Getty Music Songs, Messenger Hymns and Love Your Enemies Publishing (adm by MusicService.org and Love Your Enemies Publishing/Townend Songs (PRS) (adm. By Music Service.org in the US and Canada and by www.songsolutions.org elsewhere in the World).

Today’s Message

Advent: Week 2 – Bethlehem Candle

The Gospel in the Manger

“Adoption”

Matthew 1:18-25

Notes

I. _______________ Adoption (Matthew 1:18-25)

II. ________________ Adoption (Ex 4:22; Jer 31:9; Ps 80)

III. ________________ Adoption

(Eph 1:5; Ro 8:15; 9:26; 11:17-24; John 15:1)

Communion

Prayer of Contrition

Sharing of the Elements

We invite to the Lord’s Table all those who are baptized disciples of Jesus Christ and are under the authority of Christ and His body, the Church. By eating the bread and drinking the wine with us as a visitor, you are acknowledging to the elders of this local church that you are in covenant with God and an active member of a congregation in which the gospel is faithfully confessed, taught, and believed. You also acknowledge that you are a sinner, without hope except in the sovereign mercy of God, and that you are trusting in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. If you have any doubt about your participation, please speak to the elders before or after the service.

Declaration of Forgiveness

We Are Sent Forth in Worship

to Share the Gospel

On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist’s Cry
1. On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry announces that the Lord is nigh.
Awake and harken, for he brings glad tidings of the King of kings!
1. Then cleansed be every life from sin;
make straight the way for God within,

And let us all our hearts prepare for Christ to come and enter there.
1. We hail you as our Savior, Lord, our refuge and our great reward.
Without your grace we waste away like flowers that wither and decay.
1. Stretch forth your hand, our health restore,
and make us rise to fall no more.

O let your face upon us shine and fill the world with love divine.
1. All praise to you, eternal Son, whose advent has our freedom won,
Whom with the Father we adore, and Holy Spirit, evermore.

Words: Charles Coffin, 1736; tr. Composite, P.D. Music (PUER NOBIS): Trier manuscript, 15th c.: adapt. Michael Praetorius, 1609; harm. George Ratcliffe Woodward, 1910 P.D.

Benediction

Second Sunday of Advent

Order of Worship

Sunday, December 4, 2022

Welcome and Announcements

Gathering the Family Together

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence!

All: Verse 1

Let all mortal flesh keep silence, And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded, For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth, Our full homage to demand.

Women: Verse 2

King of kings, yet born of Mary, As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture, In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful His own self for heavenly food.

All: Verse 3

Rank on rank the host of heaven, Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth From the realms of endless day,
That the powers of hell may vanish As the darkness clears away.

All: Verse 4

At His feet the six-winged seraph, Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the presence, As with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Lord Most High!

Call To Worship

Scripture Reading:                                                                  Luke 1:46-55

Mary’s Song of Praise: The Magnificat

⁴⁶ And Mary said,
“My soul magnifies the Lord,

⁴⁷     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

⁴⁸ for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

⁴⁹ for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.

⁵⁰ And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.

⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;

⁵² he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;

⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.

⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,

⁵⁵ as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

Prayer of Invocation

Advent Proclamation

Leader: We listen, Lord, for your words of comfort.

People: We listen for joyful news of your arrival.

Leader: In the wilderness of this world,
we have heard voices announcing your coming.

People: They have reminded us that
our lives are like the grasses of the field.

Leader: The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand forever.

People: We hunger for your word, O Lord,
because your word gives life.

Leader: Your word is salvation – the joy of all humankind.

People: Come and speak your word to us.

Leader:   Come, Lord, and speak to your people. Your word is life to us,
and your promises are true. Prepare our hearts and our world
to hear your voice and to see your glory.

Leader: Today we light two candles.

We light the first candle to remind us of our need for a savior.

We light the second candle to remind us of the promises

in God’s Word.

People:    O King of all nations, Jesus Christ,

               Only joy of every heart, Come and save Your people.

Red Hymnal #178                                           “O Little Town of Bethlehem”

(Verses 1, 2 & 4)

Declaring What We Believe:

The Nicene Creed

All:

We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

Men & Boys:

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,

begotten from the Father before all ages,

God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God,

begotten, not made; of the same essence as the Father.

Women & Girls

Through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven;

he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,

and was made man.

Jubilee Singers

He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered and was buried.

Women & Girls:

The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.

He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

Men & Boys:

He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead.

His kingdom will never end.

All:

And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life.

He proceeds from the Father and the Son,

and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified.

He spoke through the prophets.

We believe in one holy universal and apostolic church.

We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look forward to the resurrection of the dead,

and to life in the world to come.   Amen.

We Respond to God’s Presence

Once in Royal David’s City

(Verses 1, 2, &4)

Verse 1 – Jubilee Singers:

Once in royal David’s city stood a lowly cattle shed,

Where a mother laid her Baby in a manger for His bed:

Mary was that mother mild, Jesus Christ her little Child.

Verse 2 – Congregation:

He came down to earth from Heaven, Who is God and Lord of all, And His shelter was a stable, and His cradle was a stall;

With the poor, and mean, and lowly, lived on earth our Savior holy.

Verse 4 – Congregation:

And our eyes at last shall see Him, through His own redeeming love,

For that Child so dear and gentle is our Lord in Heav’n above,

And He leads His children on to the place where He is gone.

(Verses 1, 2, 4 public domain. Verse 3 Michael Morgan © 2011, admin. Faith Alive Christian Resources)

Holy Child
1. Holy Child who chose the hearts of men to be His favoured home.
Leaving Heaven’s gates for Bethlehem, God came to call His own.

Now to us the highest King is born, behold, the Royal Son.

Glory kneels to bind up all that’s torn; the promised One has come.
1. Joy and pain, as man, He knew on earth; No place to lay His head.
As a servant He embraced this world and on a cross He bled.

Having borne the deepest grief of man, He rose to Heaven’s throne.

Now I’m sheltered in the Father’s hand until He calls me home.
1. May the gift of God amaze us still, the triumph of all time.
As His child, I kneel to Heaven’s will and make His purpose mine.

Though this road be scarred with trial and pain, it’s paved with lavish grace.

Knowing Him will be my greatest gain; His Throne, my resting place.

Copyright © 2004 Thankyou Music/Adm. by worshiptogether.com songs excl. UK & Europe, adm. by Kingsway Music. tym@kingsway.co.uk. Used by permission.

Red Hymnal #183 “I Wonder as I Wander”

Children’s Sermon

Pastoral Prayer

The basket to receive His tithes and our offerings

is located on the left as you leave the Sanctuary.

We Worship Through Hearing

Sermon Hymn:

Sing We the Song of Emmanuel
1. Sing we the song of Emmanuel; this the Christ who was long fore-told.
Lo! In the shadows of Bethlehem, promise of dawn now our eyes behold.

God most high in a manger laid, lift your voices and now proclaim:

Great and glorious, Love has come to us;

join now with the hosts of heaven.
1. Come we to welcome Emmanuel; King who came with no crown or throne.
Helpless He lay, the invincible, Maker of Mary, now Mary’s son.

O what wisdom to save us all, shepherds, sages, before Him fall.

Grace and majesty, what humility; come on bended knee, adore Him.
1. Go spread the news of Emmanuel; joy and peace for the weary heart.
Lift up your heads, for your King has come;

sing, for the light overwhelms the dark.

Glory shining for all to see, hope alive, let the gospel ring.

God has made a way; He will have the praise;

tell the world His name is Jesus.

© 2015 Getty Music Songs, Messenger Hymns and Love Your Enemies Publishing (adm by MusicService.org and Love Your Enemies Publishing/Townend Songs (PRS) (adm. By Music Service.org in the US and Canada and by www.songsolutions.org elsewhere in the World).

Today’s Message

Advent: Week 2 – Bethlehem Candle

The Gospel in the Manger

“Adoption”

Matthew 1:18-25

Notes

I. _______________ Adoption (Matthew 1:18-25)

II. ________________ Adoption (Ex 4:22; Jer 31:9; Ps 80)

III. ________________ Adoption

(Eph 1:5; Ro 8:15; 9:26; 11:17-24; John 15:1)

Communion

Prayer of Contrition

Sharing of the Elements

We invite to the Lord’s Table all those who are baptized disciples of Jesus Christ and are under the authority of Christ and His body, the Church. By eating the bread and drinking the wine with us as a visitor, you are acknowledging to the elders of this local church that you are in covenant with God and an active member of a congregation in which the gospel is faithfully confessed, taught, and believed. You also acknowledge that you are a sinner, without hope except in the sovereign mercy of God, and that you are trusting in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. If you have any doubt about your participation, please speak to the elders before or after the service.

Declaration of Forgiveness

We Are Sent Forth in Worship

to Share the Gospel

On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist’s Cry
1. On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry announces that the Lord is nigh.
Awake and harken, for he brings glad tidings of the King of kings!
1. Then cleansed be every life from sin;
make straight the way for God within,

And let us all our hearts prepare for Christ to come and enter there.
1. We hail you as our Savior, Lord, our refuge and our great reward.
Without your grace we waste away like flowers that wither and decay.
1. Stretch forth your hand, our health restore,
and make us rise to fall no more.

O let your face upon us shine and fill the world with love divine.
1. All praise to you, eternal Son, whose advent has our freedom won,
Whom with the Father we adore, and Holy Spirit, evermore.

Words: Charles Coffin, 1736; tr. Composite, P.D. Music (PUER NOBIS): Trier manuscript, 15th c.: adapt. Michael Praetorius, 1609; harm. George Ratcliffe Woodward, 1910 P.D.

Benediction

Bulletin Date: 2022-12-04

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December 4, 2022

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